The present invention relates generally to protective clothing for firefighters and, more particularly, to an improved bellows arrangement for the knee joint region of firefighters pants.
Firefighting is very physically demanding work which must be performed under stressful conditions even in the best of circumstances. It is essential for firefighters to wear clothing which protects them from the hazards of the fire environment, while still allowing freedom of movement, particularly in the knee joint region. Firefighter's apparel most often consists of a long-sleeved turnout coat and full length turnout pants made of layers including a flame and heat resistant layer, a moisture barrier layer, and a thermal barrier layer. The sleeves and pant legs of prior art turnout apparel provide excellent protection when firefighters are standing upright with their arms straight.
Many duties of a firefighter require flexion in the knee joint areas, however. Unfortunately, in prior art turnout apparel, tightness is produced across the outside of the knee joint when the joint is flexed. This tightness compresses the thermal liner and reduces the thermal protection of the clothing in the flexed region. Further, this tightness combined with the bunching of material at the inside of the joint reduces the range of flexion of the knee joint. Additionally, the force required to bend the joint is increased, while complete flexion of the knee joint is impaired. Finally, there is a relatively high amount of cuff travel when knee joints are flexed, increasing the risk of exposure to fire hazards.
Aldridge et al, U.S. Pat. No. 5,031,242, (the '242 patent) disclose improvements in firefighter's turnout apparel including elbow and knee joint sections formed to include bellows at the bend of the elbow and knee joints for increased protection, flexion range, and comfort. The bellows disclosed in the '242 patent include a generally elliptical section extending halfway around the leg across the front or outside of the knee, producing a slight bend in the legs of the turnout pants at the knee to reduce material tightness when the knee is bent. In accordance with the '242 patent, a generally rectangular band portion may be added to the bellows section to extend across the back or inside of the knee joint, so the bellows and the generally rectangular portion together form a band that encircles the entire knee joint The generally elliptical section is, at any rate, sewn to upper and lower halves of each pant leg which cover the upper and lower leg, respectively, and covers a limited area therebetween.
The manufacture of knee bellows in accordance with the '242 patent produces a superior product having significant advantages, but is time-consuming and expensive. In particular, the curved, lower edge of the generally elliptical section of the knee bellows is difficult, time-consuming and expensive to manufacture.
Accordingly, there is a need for improved, cost-effective turnout apparel which facilitates joint flexion by substantially reducing the tightness on the outside of the flexed joint, compression of the thermal barrier, and the amount of sleeve and/or pant cuff travel, without decreasing the thermal protection provided to the firefighter at the joint regions. Improvements in the design of firefighter turnout apparel provide more comfort and permit freer mobility while requiring less work to bend joints, and the availability of affordable turn-out apparel with such improvements permits the provision of better protection for firefighters.